As sub-Saharan African countries develop stronger and sturdier economies, the rise of income and increase in middle-class consumers have interested many fast food companies. This in turn has caused the large companies to start opening up fast food joints such as KFC and Domino’s in Africa, vying and competeing the attention of the westernized middle-class of Africa.

This surge in the investment of the African fast food market is a very positive thing, despite the fact that some believe it would westernize their culture too much, making them a copy of America. The efforts to incorporate local tastes would not be lost on the target audience, and the opening stores would mean that more local jobs would be available, helping the poorer population by providing jobs that would have higher safety and sanitation standards than other available jobs. While presently 50% of the sub-Saharan African population are living below the poverty line, this number is expected to lower as the economy continues to grow. More fast food joints will be opened as the amount of middle-class consumers grow, meaning more jobs that will help to draw even more people out of poverty. Though the idea of business ethnics may be brought in due to how this may be interpreted as taking advantage of the poor, it is far-fetched at least. Those in poverty would benefit from being paid workers of a large company, and the company themselves all have brand reputation to maintain, that is, forcing people to work under standards that would be considered unjust would quickly reach media.

Are fast food restaurants the symbol of a westernizing country? Or just a symbol of wealth? Regardless, the investments of large fast food joints would not only serve to sate the hunger of an emerging class of citizens, but also aid in bringing more people out of the poverty by increasing the number of jobs available.

CNN, October 2013

Blackberry, a company that had been declining rapidly for the past few years, have been continually laying off employees in an attempt to cut losses and reduce their liabilities. However, the loss of these human resources only mean that other tech companies will benefit. Though Research In Motion had dominated the Canadian tech sector for a long time, overshadowing other companies, it does not mean that the other companies are also doing poorly. In fact, with all the former Blackberry employees now looking for jobs once more, a once Blackberry-centered pool of talent is now spread farther around, which may lead to an overall improvement in Canada’s tech sector.

Though news of Blackberry’s fall may not sit well with investors who have lost, and to the owners and higher-ups of the company who are still struggling to guide the declining company back towards its former glory, there is still something positive to be garnered by those laid off during this fall. Blackberry was a very big company, but there are many smaller businesses that, unlike Blackberry, are stable and growing. As the giant company deflates, laying off employees, those employees will find new jobs in other companies, bringing in valuable talent and experience to the budding start-ups of the tech sectors, which, in the past would be hard-pressed, as RIM attracted almost all the talented potential employees. Now, after the decline of a former giant in the smartphone industry and before the rising of a new massive company, there is a relatively even spread of talent, stemming from the fact that, in the coming of Blackberry’s demise, there are many smaller technology companies that will compete with each other for profits. It is in competition that companies grow, and as Blackberry leaves the stage, there will be many more ambitious businesses striving to make a brand for themselves, to become the next leading Canadian technology firm through innovation, creativity, and marketing.

The fall of Blackberry may serve as a warning and example of what companies should not do, but in RIM’s loss, many new companies will benefit, from the new labor market that will become a glut of talent after former Blackberry employees begin to look for jobs once more.

 Globe and Mail, October 2013

On September 18, 2013, Sega, a Japanese-based multinational video game company known for franchises such as Sonic the Hedgehog and Total War, has acquired Index Corporations in a 14 billion yen (144 million USD) acquisition. In turn, all intellectual property of Index Corporations now belong to Sega, including the acclaimed Shin Megami Tensei and Etrian Oddssey series produced by the former.

This acquisition is, in my opinion, an attempt by Sega to regain its footing as one of the top video game producing companies internationally. While they are still an influential force in the market, and though their products are still selling well enough that they are increasing both revenue and profits, Sega has been lacking when it comes to well-acclaimed titles, and thus, have been unable to produce the same blockbuster titles that competitors such as Nintendo and Sony have been producing. The upcoming continuation of the Pokemon franchise, Pokemon X & Y, from Nintendo will serve to only widen the gap between the two companies. While Sega’s most well-known franchise, Sonic the Hedgehog, is stagnating, Pokemon is still going very strong, with multiple movies, television series, card games, and toys being made from it. The difference in brand power is wide, and it was a smart idea to take over Index Corporations, to use that company’s intellectual property to branch off into the still-emerging markets of PC and smartphone gaming. More importantly though, it would mean that the company that had created highly acclaimed titles such as Persona 4 and Etrian Oddssey IV would be working for Sega now.

Possessing two franchises that are very popular in Japan and garnering more international interest with every installation would do much to boost Sega’s brand image. Though it may be optimistic to say, this acquisition may be what would be needed by Sega to once again become a producer of the enjoyable, high-quality games that made it a well-known company when it was just a start up.

Siliconera, September 2013

The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives have recently released a 41-page report named “Degrees of Uncertainty: Navigating the Changing Terrain of University Finance”, which predicts that the price of an average university degree is increasing steadily, the estimated yearly fee of 2016/2017 being triple that of 1990/1991. Though this appears to simply be a cause of changing value in the Canadian dollar, considering $1000 was worth more in the 1900s than 2013, the larger price tag associated with a university degree may serve to disillusion prospective students from applying to universities. Scholarships and government loans may mitigate the problem, but with increasing prices on many essentials, high school graduates may be inclined to focus more on trades jobs, leaving universities with lower enrollment numbers, and thus, less assets. The governments initiative to promote trades-related and the incentive of ‘working’ while being ‘trained’, combined with increasing tuition costs in universities, may cut down on the amount of people taking the ‘white-collared’ jobs that are usually associated with university degrees.

Would this create a positive outcome though? The majority of students currently coming out of high school are applying to colleges and universities, creating an oversupply in certain jobs, which would make finding jobs harder. On the other hand, the lack of experienced tradesmen have opened gaps in that job market, as employers wanting trained workers would be hard pressed to find one. If an increased tuition would result in a rebalancing of the amount of students applying for apprenticeships and for degrees, the increasing tuition may actually be for the greater good.

Source: CBC News

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